Ran across this link to JFK on Good Morning America on the Daou Report.

[http://www.abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=1328763]

My take below:

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I am a veteran of the current Iraq war. I have been in favor of withdrawal since August 2003, my third month in Iraq. Why? Whatever good we accomplished was in the past. Ahead lied only pain. The Iraqis are a mideval people. "Democracy" of the Mubarak or the Musharraf style, or an out-and-out shiite theocracy was not worth another life. I could see that because I was there. I actually saw what was happening on the ground, and had brains enough to put two and two together.

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The Democrats need to fight for the middle class. Period. Not the rich. Not the poor. The middle class.

The corporate overlords are going to try to shove a substantial assault on the middle class through, while Americans are distracted by the so-called "culture wars". While many want to wage war over 'Scalito' and abortion, that would be fighting the "conservatives" strength.

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I wrote this to the AP, but it probably won't see the light of day. It probably has some instructive value to patrons of MYDD, so I will post it here.

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We have a problem, friends. It's the people themselves. They lead with their hearts, not their heads, and the government cannot help but follow suit if it is to remain democratic. America is attriting trillions per year. Is that just a numerical sentence? Or does it allude to things happening in the real world?

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I tried to narrow the list down to the major contenders for this dishonor, we haven't had a new poll on the front page for a while so I thought I'd throw one up on the diaries. I really wish Kerry would have won... ah well, the people are getting what they deserve.

This was on DailyKos and I'm actually upset that it isn't getting more circulation. Yeah, Rove. I know. Yeah, Roberts. Gotcha. But this isn't about something that wasn't totally f'd up before 9-11. This is about systemic failures of leadership in the aftermath of 9-11.

The gist of the article is that in 2002 the DoJ failed to prosecute one of the terrorists behind the London bombings. Now I know we're only supposed to "fight them over there" and not be liberal pussies and do things like take terrorists to court... but tell that to the mothers of the dead in London.

This diary was going to be about robots only, but I merged it with a reply to Bonddad's diary on the minimum wage.

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"From the capital this pestilence was diffused into the provinces and cities of the East, and the sportive distinction of two colours produced two strong and irreconcilable factions, which shook the foundations of a feeble government... Every law, either human or divine, was trampled under foot; and as long as the party was successful, its deluded followers appeared careless of private distress or public calamity."

          o Source: Chapter XL, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.
          o on the fighting between the Blue and Green factions of chariot race fans

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

There have been a number of diaries touching on foriegn affairs lately. Some deal with Iraq, others Darfur, and still others with places like Uzbekistan and so on. In terms of the effect on the progress of capital-C Civilization, whether retarding or promoting, the fate of the poor peoples of this world is far more worrisome than the appointment of a few judges. It is always good to see debate on it.

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